El Tucan

Always pleased with my food, Comes out quickly and fresh. Chips are fresh and the salsa is the best in town! Always greated with a smile, staff is attentive and friendly. I order something different every visit. Last time I had the shrimp quesadilla, the biggest camerones (shrimp) I've ever had in a quesadilla!

This is a review of our first dining experience at this restaurant. I'm not a picky person at all and let many many things slide but I have to tell the story as it unfolded. This experience was a train wreck. Sorry in advance for the novel. We arrived around noon on Sunday September 28th, 2014. The place was quite packed and loud. We were shown to our table in the far end corner of the restaurant. No problem. I'll list out the events of our experience in phases.......The drink orders were taken and we were given menus. The host seemed a bit rushed and not too friendly (no greeting, smile, thank you, etc). He started to leave before I'd finished telling him that I wanted no lemon or sugar in my iced tea. He delivered the drinks promptly. I took a drink of the tea. It definitely had sugar in it although not much. I might mention also that 4 people arrived about 10 minutes after we did, sitting next to us. They were served drinks and their orders taken almost immediately. (Big no-no). The server finally made it to our table (23 minutes after we arrived), again not friendly and quite rushed. We gave her our orders and asked for queso sauce. I let her know that the tea has sugar in it. She looked confused and uttered something. She rushed off with the glass. We figured she'd bring more chips since the basket was empty. When she showed up again 10 minutes later she only had the queso. She brought the tea back and again it had sugar in it! She never returned to our table so when the water guy came around I just ordered a glass of water. No biggie, only the glass smelled like a sour dishrag. I gave up.The food finally arrived (54 minutes after arriving). Looks good. Both the chimi shell and the tortillas on the fish tacos were sticky/soggy, as if they hadn't been cooked quite long enough. I'm not sure but we didn't make a big deal of it. We were done eating in a few minutes and just sat there, waiting, waiting, waiting. No check. Finally we gave up on the check and went to the cashier's desk. Nobody there and no employees to be seen anywhere. There were 4 of us waiting. Finally the man ahead of us went back to kitchen and got someone to come up to the front. It was our long-lost server. She looked frazzled. She didn't have the checks done and was looking at the menu to determine what the prices are. Hmm. We finally got out of there after an hour and 15 minutes. Perhaps it was just an off-day however this wasn't a good experience. Unorganized and unfriendly staff.

Where do I even start when it comes to El Tucan. To be quite honest it is some of the best and freshest Mexican food in Owensboro. We have went to several different ones around town and fell in love with the experience the first time we went here. The food is fresh and full of flavor. Tender pork that melts I your mouth and packed with flavor in the chile verde. Wonderfully seasoned beef and chicken and fantastic tickle your palette dishes. The staff is so friendly, down to earth and caring. We are always greeted when we gone in with smiles and hellos. They are quick to place your orders and we have never had to ask or wait for drinks to be refilled. As I read another review here speaking about the lack of service I do honestly believe is was an off night. We have been here more times than I can count on my fingers and toes and have not had poor service any single time. I would suggest the reviewer give them another shot for sure!We recommend El Tucan to all our friends!!!!

This is the 4th time I've been here. As a resident of Chicago its great to have a good authentic Mexican restaurant. The food is outstanding. The salsa that comes with chips at cost is amazing. The best hidden secret about this place is the back room with bar. This is a great room to bring a group or come after work. Not a lot of traffic but that's what is so great. The house margaritas are by far the best in the area. Of the 4 Spanish restaurants this one takes the cake and eats it too. Try the fajitas at this price you could order 2. The staff is always courteous and at tentative to your needs. They go as far as asking how your day even was. The owners care about there customers and staff. Great experience every time.